Palestinian American Faces Charges After Joining, Quitting Islamic State

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) —
This image made from video posted on Twitter by a Kurdish fighter shows a man that the Kurdish military says is an American member of the Islamic State group shortly after he turned himself in to Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq, Monday, March 14, 2016. The circumstances of the surrender were not fully disclosed but it marked a rare instance in which an IS fighter voluntarily gave himself up to Iraqi or Kurdish forces in Iraq. (Kurdish fighter via AP)
This image made from video by a Kurdish fighter shows a man that the Kurdish military says is an American member of the Islamic State group shortly after he turned himself in to Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq, in March. (Kurdish fighter via AP)

A Virginia man who surrendered to Kurdish authorities after telling them he had joined the Islamic State terror group has been flown back to the U.S. to face terror-related charges.

A judge on Thursday unsealed charges against 26-year-old Mohamad Khweis of Alexandria alleging he provided material support to terrorists.

Khweis was captured by Kurdish forces in northern Iraq in March. He told his captors he was a Palestinian-American who had gone to join the Islamic State. But he told Kurdish media he became disenchanted with life in the Islamic State and made his way to the front lines to surrender.

At the time of his capture, U.S. authorities and even Khweis’ own family appeared to be caught off guard that he had left the U.S. to join the terror group.

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